Container for baby items

ABSTRACT

A container for baby items includes an outer shell which can be selectively disposed in an open flat condition to be usable as a changing pad and which can be folded upon itself to form a pouch. At least one and preferably at least two inner compartments are detachably mounted to the inner surface of the outer shell for holding various baby items such as diapers and baby wipes when the outer shell is in its pouch condition. The inner compartment could be housed in an inner pouch detachably fastened to the shell by a magnetic clasp.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is based upon provisional application Ser. No.60/808,038 filed May 24, 2006, all of the details of which areincorporated herein by reference thereto.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

There is a need to provide containers for various baby items, such asdiapers and baby wipes. The conventional approach is to carry such itemsin some type of bag which, however, could be bulky or cumbersome and notparticularly effective in maintaining the diapers or baby wipes in theirdesired condition. U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,176,356 and 5,743,649 also exemplifyprior approaches.

One known form of container is a fabric pouch which is, for example, 7inches wide by 10 inches long and sewn closed at the bottom. The pouchhas an opening at the top. A fabric flap commences at the back of thepouch and covers the opening at the top and then attaches to the frontof the pouch with Velcro to secure the strap and items inside the pouch.The diapers and a rigid plastic wipe container are placed in the pouchto provide a convenient relatively small and fashionable manner totransport a baby's changing supplies.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of this invention is to provide a container for baby itemswhich would be convenient to use and effective in maintaining the itemsin their desired condition.

A further object of this invention is to provide such a container forbaby items which can also be used for a changing pad.

In accordance with this invention the container comprises as one mainpiece an outside shell which can be selectively disposed in a flatextended condition and which is made of a material, preferably amoisture proof material, so that it is capable of functioning as achanging pad for the baby. The outside shell could also be folded uponitself to create a pouch or container for housing one or morecompartments. Preferably the compartments are detachably mounted to theinner surface of the outside shell so that the compartments can bedetached when it is desired to use the shell as a changing pad. Inaddition, the detachability of the compartments makes it possible tovary the number and size of the compartments contained in the shell.Each compartment could house a type of item for baby needs. For example,one compartment could house diapers and another baby wipes. Preferably,each compartment can be sealed closed so that the compartment ismoisture tight.

In one practice of this invention a compartment could be detachablyinserted into an inner pouch and the inner pouch would be detachablymounted to the inner surface of the outside shell. The detachablemounting could be accomplished through the use of magnets, such asmagnetic clasps on the inner surface of the shell and on the outersurface of the inner pouch. A detachable handle could be mounted to eachtransverse end of the shell so that when the shell is in its closed orfolded position the resulting container could be easily held by thehandles.

THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a container for baby items in aclosed condition in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 2 shows the container of FIG. 1 in an open condition;

FIG. 3 is a view showing the shell and the compartments of FIG. 2detached from each other;

FIG. 4 is a front elevational view of a container in its closedcondition in accordance with a further embodiment of this invention;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the container shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a front elevational view of an inner pouch which is shown inphantom in FIG. 4;

FIG. 7 is a rear elevational view of the inner pouch shown in FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a front elevational view of the container shown in FIGS. 4-5in its open condition;

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view partly in section showing the magneticclasps used in the embodiment of FIGS. 4-8; and

FIG. 10 is an exploded view showing the detachable mounting of a handleto the shell of the container shown in FIGS. 4-9.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a container 10 for various baby items.As illustrated container 10 includes as one of its main pieces anoutside shell 12. The other components of container 10 are one or moreinner compartments, such as compartments 14 and 16 for holding variousbaby items. As illustrated in FIG. 3 compartment 14 is used for holdingbaby wipes while compartment 16 is used for containing diapers. As laterdescribed, when compartments 14,16 are mounted to outer shell 12, suchas shown in FIG. 2, and the outer shell 12 is then folded upon itself toassume the condition shown in FIG. 1 the resulting container effectivelycontains the baby items such as the diapers and baby wipes in aconvenient manner. The container is flexible and extremely portable andindeed is very fashionable in appearance such as resembling aclutch-style woman's purse.

The outer shell 12 provides a fashionable way to contain the innercompartments 14,16 and is preferably made of a moisture-proof materialso that when in the condition shown in FIG. 3 the outer pouch 12 canfunction as a changing pad for the baby. It is to be understood,however, that the invention can be broadly practiced without necessarilyusing the changing pad feature.

The inner compartments 14,16 provide a place to contain the baby wipestherefore eliminating the need to use the rigid plastic containerprovided by baby wipe manufacturers. Preferably the inner compartments14,16 along with the outer shell 12 are made of flexible plastic therebyallowing the container to be folded or bent, if needed, to sit in apreferred location. This is an advantage over prior art practices whichuse rigid plastic containers provided by the baby wipe manufacturers.

An advantageous feature of this invention is that the inner compartments14,16 can be made of moisture tight material, preferably plastic,enabling the baby wipes, for example, to remain moist much longer thanwhen the wipes are contained in the rigid plastic non-moisture tightcontainer provided by the baby wipe manufacturers. Such rigid tightcontainers of the prior art which are not made of moisture-tight plasticdo not have a good seal and therefore the baby wipes dry out quickly.The inner compartments 14,16 may take various forms. For example, in oneform the compartments could be similar to the known food type bagshaving a sliding zipper lock such as a “Ziploc” on the outer end of thecompartment to provide a liquid moisture seal. Any other suitable typeof sealing arrangement could also be used. An alternative would be toutilize the known flexible opening in the center of one of thecompartments such as compartment 14 to allow use of the continuously fedstyle of baby wipes also providing a tight seal. In this arrangement thebaby wipes are interleaved and are of the pop-up type where one wipe ispulled from the tight dispensing opening the next wipe projects slightlythrough the opening so that it can then be later pulled.

The inner compartments are sized to fit many different sizes of babywipes or other items. This is in contrast to the rigid plastic wipecontainers provided by wipe manufacturers which are sized to fit onlytheir own baby wipes so that a consumer can not mix the containers andwipes. This prior art practice limits the purchasing and/or storageoptions.

In one preferred practice of this invention the inner surface of theouter shell 12 has fastening structure or members 18 at any desiredlocation for fastening the compartments 14,16 which have complementaryfastening members 19. A convenient form of fastening member would beVelcro. If desired, a smooth flap could be provided to cover theotherwise exposed fastening members 18 when shell 12 is in its opencondition and intended to be used as a changing pad. As a result, thefastening members 18 would not be exposed and therefore would not causeirritation or discomfort to the baby.

A distinct advantage in having the inner compartments detachably mountedto the outer shell 12 is that different size/shape inner compartmentscould be used and could be mounted at different locations in accordancewith the particular needs of the user. Thus, for example, if only babywipes are necessary the inner compartment 16 need not be included andthe resultant container 10 would be reduced in its size or thicknesssince the shell 12 would carry only the inner compartment 14.

In one practice of the invention the inner compartments may beconstructed from a single envelope type structure permanently sealedalong its sides and having an openable/closable seal at each end. Theenvelope could be divided into separate compartments by forming apermanent seal transversely across the envelope such as at about midwayof its length. Alternatively, the envelope could be maintained as asingle compartment with one or both ends openable and used to containone or more different items.

Sets of fastening members 18 could be located at various portions on theinner surface of shell 12 to provide alternative locations for mountingcompartments of different sizes, shapes, etc.

In use when it is desired the invention could be practiced where acompartment has an entire side or substantial portion of a sideincluding its entire periphery mounted directly to the inner surface ofthe shell. It should be sufficient, however, that the mounting is simplyat only one or two locations since what is essentially intended is toanchor the inner compartment in place since the compartment is confinedin the pouch formed by the folded outer shell during periods of non-useto obtain an item such as a diaper or baby wipe, the sealed opening 20would be manipulated to obtain access to the item in the appropriateinner compartment 14,16. When the item is removed the sealed opening 20would then be reclosed and resealed.

Preferably, the inner compartment 16 which is intended to hold diaperswould be sized to fit the largest size of diapers or a larger quantityof smaller diapers. If desired, however, a smaller compartment 16 couldbe used where it is only intended to contain smaller diapers.

Preferably, all of the surfaces of the container 10 are covered inplastic for easy cleaning.

Although the inner compartments 14,16 can be attached to the innersurface 12 at any location it is preferred to provide a fasteninglocation at generally the longitudinal mid-line of the shell 12(excluding the outer flap 22). Thus, the inner compartments 14,16 wouldbe mounted juxtaposed each other and the shell 12 would be folded uponitself at the location where compartments 14,16 are mounted against eachother. Shell 12 could then be maintained in this closed folded conditionby having a fastening member 24 on the inner surface of flap 22 engage acomplementary fastening member 26 on the outer surface of shell 12 sothat the container assumes the closed or pouch condition shown inFIG. 1. If desired, additional or alternative fasteners could beprovided completely along or partially along the periphery of the innersurface of shell 12 to close the shell when it is folded upon itself byengaging these fasteners, such as snaps, buttons, laces or the like whenthe shell 12 is in the folded condition. Alternatively, other forms offasteners such as clips could be mounted along the outside surface ofshell 12 when it is folded upon itself to maintain the shell 12 in itsfolded condition.

If desired straps may be permanently or detachably secured to the outersurface of the outer shell 12 to facilitate carrying the container 10.Alternatively, loops or other forms of detaching structure could besecured to the outer surface of shell 10 to facilitate its storage andportability. The drawings illustrate two inner compartments 14,16particularly shaped and designed to carry baby wipes and diapers.Alternative and/or compartments could also be provided to providepockets for such items as a cell phone, wallet, keys, baby ointments,etc. It is even possible to mount these additional pockets by securingone inner compartment directly to and against another inner compartmentin piggy-back fashion against the inner surface of shell 12.

Various types of materials can be used for the components of container10. For example, the outer surface of shell 12 could be made of a fabricparticularly suitable for use by a father or to enhance the appearanceof the container.

As previously described a particular advantage in the preferred form ofouter shell 12 is that it provides a separate “mat” or changing pad andtherefore is preferably made of moisture proof material at least on itsinner surface. The outer shell would initially be a flat pad (FIG. 3)which would then be folded upon itself and could be connected along itsedges such as by snaps, zippers, Velcro, etc. to form a closed pouch orcontainer 10 (FIG. 1).

A further advantage of the present invention is that the innercompartments are readily detachably mounted to the inner surface of theshell in any suitable manner by any suitable fastener, such as but notlimited to Velcro. As a result, the inner compartments could be removedfrom the shell to not only expose the shell for use as a changing pad byproviding a clean, dry area for which to change the baby's diaper, butalso to expose the inner surface of the shell so that it can be readilycleaned. Preferably, the inner compartments are permanently closed alongthree edges with the fourth edge being selectively opened or closed suchas through the use of any sealable construction, preferably a Ziplocslide zipper fastener on the outer edge. The inner compartments thushave the capability of being moisture-tight which is particularlydesirable when containing such items as baby wipes. Where the items arewallets, cell phones, etc. a moisture-tight compartment is notnecessary.

FIGS. 4-10 illustrate a modified form of container 10A in accordancewith this invention. Container 10A would include an outer shell 12 whichcould be disposed in a closed condition where it is folded upon itselfas shown in FIG. 4 or in an open position as shown in FIG. 8. FIG. 8illustrates an inner pouch 28 detachably mounted to the inner surface ofthe shell 12, When inner pouch 28 is removed the flat open shell 12could function as a changing pad as previously described.

One of the differences between container 10 of FIGS. 1-3 and container10A of FIGS. 4-10 is that the inner compartment, such as compartment 14,is placed in inner pouch 28 and inner pouch 28 is detachably mounted toshell 12. Inner compartment 14 could be of the type previously describedand could be of a size and shape to tightly or even loosely fit in innerpouch 28. An advantage of a separate inner pouch for detachably mountingthe compartment 14 to the shell 12 is that the inner pouch 28 could bemade of the same type or of a complementary fabric havingornamentations, designs, indicia, etc. the same as or complementary tothe appearance on the outer surface and/or inner surface of shell 12.

As shown in FIG. 6 a further advantage of inner pouch 28 is that theinner pouch 28 could include one or more pockets 30, 32, 34 which couldbe separated from each other by longitudinal stitching 36. The pocketscould be completely open at their upper end or could be closed by flapsor other forms of fasteners. An advantage of having these pockets isthat the user could hold items such as cell phones, keys, money, etc.FIG. 6, for example, shows a cell phone 38 partially inserted into thepocket 34.

Container 10A includes as its form of fasteners magnetic clasps 18A onthe shell 12 with one of the clasps in engagement with a magnetic clasp19A on the inner pouch 28. Magnetic clasp 19A may be at any suitablelocation on inner pouch such as at the top or at the bottom or at thecenter. A top location is illustrated. More than one magnetic clasp 19Amay be used on inner pouch 28 with complementary magnetic clasps 18A onshell 12. Only one clasp is preferred which should provide a sufficientlocking of pouch 28 to shell 12, particularly where the clasps are snapfastened together in addition to a magnetic mounting. Minimizing thenumber of clasps on shell 12 is preferred to maintain the surface ofshell 12 relatively smooth and uninterrupted.

FIG. 9 shows the magnetic clasp 18A and 19A slightly separated from eachother. To assure proper registry and secure mounting of magnetic clasps18A and 19A one of the clasps, such as clasp 19A includes a projection40 which would be received in recess 42 thereby properly centeringmagnetic claps 18A and 19A with respect to each other. Theprojection/recess could, if desired, also comprise a snap connectionwhich, in combination with the magnets, assures a firm mounting. Asshown in FIG. 8, one set of magnetic clasps 18A such as near one edge ofthe shell 12 would include recesses for receiving projections in theopposite end set of clasps 18A for holding the shell in its closedcondition illustrated in FIG. 4.

Preferably inner pouch 28 is made of a washable fabric which could besimilar to or the same as the material used for shell 12.

FIGS. 4-5, 8 and 10 also illustrate the inclusion of handles 44 at eachend of shell 12. Handles 44 could be permanently attached to shell 12 inany suitable manner. In a preferred practice of the invention, however,handles 44 are detachably mounted such as illustrated in FIG. 10. Asshown in FIG. 10 a fabric loop 46 is permanently secured to a transverseedge of shell 12. A U-shaped metal bail 48 is inserted through loop 46.Bail 48 has aligned openings 50,52. Opening 50 in one practice of thisinvention is threaded. Opening 52 has a recessed shoulder. A fastener 54would be inserted through opening 52 and then through a correspondingopening 56 in handle 44. Fastener 54 would then be received in opening50. One end 58 of fastener 54 is threaded and the opposite end has ahead with a slot 60. Through use of the slot 60 the fastener 54 could berotated such as by a screwdriver until the threaded end 58 is firmlyengaged in threaded opening 50. The head of fastener 54 would be seatedin the recessed shoulder of opening 52. In this manner, an end of handle44 would be securely mounted to shell 12, but yet could be readilydetached which would be particularly desirable for washing the shell 12.A similar structure would be used at each of the four locations wherethe two handles are connected to shell 12.

It is to be understood that the handle structure described with respectto FIG. 10 is exemplary of the preferred practice of this invention.Other forms of detachable mounting of the handles to the shell couldalso be used. When the handles are to be removed for washing the metalbails 48 and the metal fastener 54 would also preferably be detached sothat only the fabric and the magnetic clasps 18A would remain on shell12. Alternatively, where the handle and other components are made of awashable material it is not necessary to detach the handle from theshell when cleaning the shell. In such case, it would also not benecessary to make the handle detachable other than to provide thepossibility of using other forms of handles or to replace a damagedhandle.

In an exemplary practice of the invention as shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, theinner pouch 28 extends from about the lateral center line of shell 12 toslightly below the location of the magnetic clasps 18A, 18A. As aresult, the magnetic clasps are exposed for contact with and forengagement to the corresponding magnetic clasps 18A, 18A at the oppositeend of shell 12. Where, for example, shell 12 is generally rectangularin shape, shell 12 could be about 17 inches long and about 10 incheswide. Inner pouch 28 could be about 8 inches long and about 9¼ incheswide. The individual pockets 30,32,34 could be about five inches long.The widths of the pockets could vary in accordance with their intendeduse. Thus, pocket 30 might be about 3 inches wide, while pocket 32 couldbe about 3¼ inches wide and pocket 34 could be about 2½ inches wide.Magnetic clasps 18A, 18A at each lateral end of shell 12 could be spacedapart about 8 inches from center to center which would be about 1¼inches from the outer longitudinal edge and about ¾ inches from theouter transverse or lateral edge at each end of shell 12. The magneticclasp 19A on inner pouch 28 could be located on center or slightly offcenter in the transverse direction. The complementary magnetic clasp 18Aon shell 12 which engages magnetic clasp 19A would be correspondinglylocated to engage clasp 19A. Each end of handle 44 might be secured atabout 2½ inches inwardly from the longitudinal edge of shell 12. Thehandles may be generally U-shaped with the bight of the U extendingabout 4½ inches away from the outer lateral edge of shell 12.

Although container 10A is illustrated and described as having a pair ofhandles the invention could be practiced where, for example, a singlehandle is provided at one edge of the shell 12. Since the shell 12 wouldbe secured together at its free ends a second handle would not benecessary, but would be preferred for aesthetic reasons and todistribute the forces when carrying the container 10A by its handles.

In the practice of the container shown in FIGS. 4-10 a single innerpouch 28 is detachably secured to the shell 12. The invention, however,could be practiced with a plurality of such inner pouches. For example,the inner pouch 28 could be of a size which is only slightly smaller inwidth than the width of the shell 12. The pouch 28 is secured toapproximately the midway or transverse bisecting line of shell 12. Asecond similarly shaped pouch could be mounted on the other side ofshell 12 and could be disposed against the first inner pouch when theshell 12 is in its closed condition. Alternatively, the inner pouch 28could be of smaller shape occupying less area than is illustrated. Insuch case, there could be a plurality of varying shaped inner pouchesdetachably mounted at desired locations on the inner shell 12 by theprovision of suitably located fasteners on shell 12.

The provision of magnetic clasps 18A on the inner surface of shell 12would, of course, be located on the surface that is used as the changingpad. Such magnetic clasps would preferably be made of a metal material.If it is desired to cover these magnetic clasps a suitable flap could bedetachably mounted over the clasps when the shell is used as a changingpad and then exposed when the clasps are used for their fasteningfunction. Preferably, the centrally located magnetic clasp 18A is aclasp which has a recess and does not have a projection that might beuncomfortable when shell 12 is used as a changing pad.

It is to be understood that various features described with a particularembodiment of this invention could be used with other embodiments withinthe spirit of this invention.

In a broad sense the present invention includes an outer shell and atleast one inner compartment mounted to the outer shell. The outer shellhas an extended area on its inner surface to function as a changing pad.The inner compartment is detachably mounted to the inner surface of theouter shell so that when it is removed from the outer shell it willselectively expose the extended area. In the preferred practice of thisinvention the exposed area is the entire inner surface of the outershell which becomes exposed when the outer shell is disposed in its openflat condition. For use as a container, the outer shell is folded into apouch condition after the inner compartments have been mounted to theinner surface of the outer shell.

1. A container for baby items comprising an outer shell, at least oneinner compartment mounted to said outer shell, said outer shell havingan extended area on its inner surface to function as a changing pad, andsaid inner compartment being detachably mounted to said inner surface ofsaid outer shell to selectively expose said extended area when saidinner compartment is detached.
 2. The container of claim 1 wherein saidouter shell is capable of being in a first condition where it is openand flat and its entire inner surface is exposed to function as achanging pad, and is capable of being in a second condition where saidouter shell is folded upon itself to form a pouch.
 3. The container ofclaim 2 wherein said inner compartment has a dispensing opening whichcan be sealed whereby said inner compartment is moisture tight.
 4. Thecontainer of claim 2 wherein there are a plurality of said innercompartments, and at least one of said inner compartments having adispensing opening which can be sealed tight so that said at least oneinner compartment is moisture tight.
 5. The container of claim 2 whereinsaid inner surface of said outer shell includes fastening structure, andsaid at least one inner compartment includes complementary fasteningstructure whereby said inner compartment may be detachably mounted tosaid inner surface of said outer shell by the selective coupling of saidfastening structure and said complementary fastening structure.
 6. Thecontainer of claim 2 wherein said outer shell includes a flap which ismounted to the outer surface of said outer shell when said outer shellis in said pouch condition.
 7. The container of claim 2 wherein thereare at least two of said inner compartments, one of said innercompartments containing diapers and the other of said inner compartmentscontaining baby wipes, and each of said at least two inner compartmentshaving a sealable dispensing opening whereby each of said innercompartments may be moisture tight.
 8. The container of claim 2including an inner pouch detachably mounted to said inner surface ofsaid outer shell, and said inner compartment being located in said innerpouch.
 9. The container of claim 8 wherein said inner pouch includes atleast one pocket on its outer surface.
 10. The container of claim 8wherein said inner pouch includes a plurality of pockets on its outersurface.
 11. The container of claim 8 including magnetic fasteners onsaid inner pouch and said inner surface of said outer shell to comprisesaid detachable mounting of said inner pouch to said outer shell. 12.The container of claim 11 wherein said magnetic fasteners are magneticclasps which are detachably mounted together magnetically and by snapconnection.
 13. The container of claim 8 including at least one handlemounted to an edge of said inner shell to facilitate the carrying ofsaid container when said outer shell is in said folded second condition.14. The container of claim 13 wherein said handle is detachably mountedto a transverse edge of said outer shell.
 15. The container of claim 13wherein a handle is mounted to each of the transverse edges of saidouter shell.
 16. The container of claim 8 wherein said inner compartmenthas a dispensing opening which can be sealed whereby said innercompartment is moisture tight.
 17. The container of claim 8 wherein saidouter shell and said inner pouch are made of a washable fabric.
 18. Thecontainer of claim 8 wherein said inner compartment is located in saidinner pouch without attachment to said inner pouch.
 19. The container ofclaim 2 wherein said inner surface of said outer shell includesfasteners and said fasteners being magnetic clasps which are detachablymounted together magnetically and by snap connection.
 20. The containerof claim 2 including at least one handle mounted to a transverse edge ofsaid outer shell to facilitate the carrying of said container when saidouter shell is in its folded second condition.